What you probably did not know about China

Street Art in the walls of Xi ´An. China

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Official Name: People’s Republic of China
Capital: Beijing (Pekin)
Language: Standard Chinese or Mandarin (Putonghua, based on the Beijing dialect), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghainese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority languages (see Ethnic groups entry)
note: Mongolian is official in Nei Mongol, Uighur is official in Xinjiang Uygur, and Tibetan is official in Xizang (Tibet)
Size: 9,596,961 sq km
Population: 1,349,585,838 (July 2013 est.)
Average age: 36.3 years
GDP Per Capita: $9,100 (2012 est.)
Religion: Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Christian 3%-4%, Muslim 1%-2%
Type of government: Communist state
Currency: Yuan (6 Yuan aprox. 1 USD)
Source: CIA World Fact Book

Interesting Fact: According to the official measurement made by China’s State Administration of Cultural Heritage the Great Wall of China measures 21,196.18 km. And even though it is that big, contrary to popular belief it cannot be seen from outer space.

China is a magnificent country with endless stories and facts that could fill pages of information. Just to have an idea, the earliest traces of human civilization in China date back around the 17th century B.C. So in order for you, our dear reader, to get a little taste of what contemporary China tastes like, we present to you the following interesting facts about the most populated country in the world. We would like to thank Leslie, our Chinese friend who helped us by answering the questions of this post of: What you probably did not know about China .

Which would you say is the National Food Dish of the country?

Leslie: In China, there isn’t one in particular because China is too large, distinct north and south, east and west is very different. The most influential and typical cooking styles are the “Eight Cuisine”. These are as follows, Sichuan Cuisine, Shandong Cuisine , Guangdong Cuisine, Huaiyang Cuisine, Hunan Cuisine, Anhui Cuisine, Fujian Cuisine, Zhejiang Cuisine. They all taste good, but  the gap is very big.

Fried cauliflower with bacon and lots of onion. In the back fried tofu.

For a list of our favorite dishes check this link.

A local Joke?

Leslie commented that there are many jokes but he could not think about one in particular. However to my great surprise I discovered that Chinese people have a tremendous positive and contagious sense of humor. Sometimes I just turned on the TV and without understanding a thing the clips I saw were good enough to steal a big smile from my face. It wasn’t just the T.V, it was the people on the bus, the trains, the stores, everywhere. People seemed to be having fun. So, I share with you a little taste of what I re-discovered in this country.

And yes you might already know him, but he is still great.

Which do you consider the National Favorite Sport?

Ping Pong table in Chinese Buddhist temple in Mt. Emei.

Roberto: Officials believe, table tennis is called the national sport and boy do Chinese know how to play. We saw Ping Pong tables everywhere, even inside one of the temples in Mt. Emei. Just to have an idea on how great these people are at their game The Chinese Ping Pong won every possible gold medal in the past two summer Olympics, amazing. Watch Deng Yaping in action, probably the greatest player of all time to play the game.

Which would you say is the favorite soft drink?

Leslie: Of course is “Tea”. Chinese tea is mainly classified into six categories: Green tea, black tea, oolong tea, scented tea, white tea, and compressed tea.

Who do you consider to be the National Hero?

Mao Statue in Kashgar, China

Leslie: Generally people’s first thought is MAO Zedong(Chairman Mao). He can be considered a national hero.

A Music group loved by young and old?

Leslie: Because China has experienced a reform and opening up, cultural change is very big, the elderly and young people like very different types of music. Old people like the Chinese folk, but in young people’s opinion, Heibao (Punk Panther) and Cui jian is the soul of rock. But today there are a lot of bands

Roberto: On the other hand we cannot assure how popular this song is, but we heard all the way from Chengdu to Laos on the streets of China while cycling. But it’s climax came in the house of Xi Liu where Annika even recorded a choreography made by the girls. Listen carefully to the music of the background and tell us if this is really contagious.

Favorite T.V. Show in this country?

Leslie: Recently, the “I am a singer ( Chinese version)” is very popular. Used to be “If You Are the One”.

Most popular Brand of car in China?

Leslie: We have all sorts of brands from abroad. At present there are many cherryautomobiles.

Roberto: I personally saw a great amount of scooters out there. Most of them electric ones.

The latest and most popular movie in China?

Leslie: “Let The Bullets Fly” by director Jiangwen in last year. This year is the Feng Xiaogang’s “1942”,I think.

Where would you consider to be the number one touristic destiny for Chinese people in China?

Beijing has crazy nights of party.

Leslie: Beijing (Pekin) is the most touristic destiny for Chinese people in China.

Roberto: We were there for 4 days and I could have stayed there a year, it is indeed a beautiful city to be in with so much to do.

Most common name for a Chinese Man or Woman?

Chinese kids and a friendly wise man from Kashgar, China from the ethnic group Uygur.

Leslie: The most common name is ‘zhao qian sun li’. They are as popular as the foreign names Rose, Jack, Bruce and so on. My name is from a singer’s name who comes from Hongkong. He is my favorite.

How many letters are there in your alphabet or in your case how many Ideograms are there in the Chinese language?

It says “The Path of Water”

Leslie: Chinese characters have 85000.and Chinese phonetic alphabet have 26.The biggest characteristic is in the standard Chinese grammar. There is strictly no morphological change. The noun has no change, no word-activity, and that is the difference to European language characteristic.

If you are interested in the Art of Chinese Calligraphy you might probably check this out here.